OT: Pay To Play?

[EagerFan]

Feast Week guide: Reactions to UConn losing (twice!); rest of week preview

A loaded week features blueblood battles, top teams vying for big wins, a potential new paid future of MTEs -- and already two big upsets in Maui.

www.espn.com

There's also a new entrant to Feast Week this year: The Players Era Festival in Las Vegas, which could revolutionize future holiday tournaments

The event, anchored by Houston, Alabama and Rutgers, is being held at the MGM Grand Garden Arena and will give $1 million in NIL payouts to every participating team. Pay-for-play events are against the NCAA's rules, which means the Players Era Festival organizers are trying to ensure compliance even as all signs point to the games moving forward.

It will be closely watched by not just the NCAA, but the entire college basketball world. Because the format, and importantly the financial benefits, could become the norm in this new era if it goes off without a hitch. If it doesn't, it will be an anomaly in a strange time for college basketball.

I hadn't heard about this minor aspect of the "Festival". $1 million in NIL to every participating team? Seems like a whole new can o worms opening up.

 

[PurpleWhiteBoy]

Imagine if the tournament sponsors were just to invite the players (players form their own teams, which just happen to be the same as their college teams) and they played in "really cool uniforms."

Would anyone watch? Just thinking out loud.

 

[Hungry Jack]

Imagine if the tournament sponsors were just to invite the players (players form their own teams, which just happen to be the same as their college teams) and they played in "really cool uniforms."

Would anyone watch? Just thinking out loud.

It’s not crazy in concept. I could see some of the top college players banning together to form their own summer league, playing exhibition, games for broadcast media, and making some real good coin doing so.

 

[EagerFan]

Imagine if the tournament sponsors were just to invite the players (players form their own teams, which just happen to be the same as their college teams) and they played in "really cool uniforms."

Would anyone watch? Just thinking out loud.

So, like, if the top 100 ranked high school seniors every year were invited to a summer tourney and each paid the going NIL rate for superstars, would they come and would it make money?

Imagine what that could do for their NIL negotiations.
Imagine what that could do for the schools - getting to see the ranked kids finally playing against legit competition, before paying them?
Imagine what that could do for the ranking system.

Sounds like a lot of winning all around.